Download our app and ask your own questions during your visit. Here are some that others have asked.

So much sky here!

This scene is especially beautiful because the artist was capturing a scene of early Brooklyn and during that time there were no high-rise buildings or skyscrapers in Brooklyn or New York City, so much more sky is visible than now. Also, he was capturing a scene from his own window and remaining true to what he saw on a daily basis.

What streets are these?

Those are Old Fulton Street and Front Street
in what is today Downtown Brooklyn, right by the Brooklyn Bridge. Front Street was a fashionable street lined with upper-class residences. At this time, Front Street was at the Brooklyn waterfront. The view is not entirely accurate however: Guy greatly accentuated the curve of Front Street in order to bring the houses along its outer edges into view. He also altered the angle of James Street to accommodate a broad wedge of houses.

Are any of these buildings still standing?

I love this work by Francis Guy! Those are Old Fulton Streets and Front Streets in what is today Downtown Brooklyn, right by the Brooklyn Bridge. I don't think any of those building are still there.

At this time, Front Street was at the Brooklyn waterfront. The view is not entirely accurate however: Guy greatly accentuated the curve of Front Street in order to bring the houses along its outer edges into view. He also altered the angle of James Street to accommodate a broad wedge of houses. Many visitors ask about the lack of women in the painting, any theories?

1820, hmm, 'twas a different time.

Ye' be right!

Did women not venture outside or were they just not in the painting?

The picture features the prominent white men in the neighborhood that the artist knew, so he would not have depicted as many women or African American people as affluent, white men. It is an indication of both the artist's choices and the time (in another American Identities gallery, you can see many depictions of women, but in interior scenes). At the time women were obviously limited in what they could do and were mostly encouraged to stay home and tend to children and domestic things. Guy actually staged the models and painted them one at a time, so he deliberately chose not to include many women or African Americans at the time.

So, this is what the Dumbo area once looked like?

Yes, that is Old Fulton Street and Front Street in what is today Downtown Brooklyn, right by the Brooklyn Bridge. Front Street was a fashionable street lined with upper-class residences. At this time, Front Street was at the Brooklyn waterfront. The view is not entirely accurate however: Guy greatly accentuated the curve of Front Street in order to bring the houses along its outer edges into view. He also altered the angle of James Street to accommodate a broad wedge of houses.

Thanks!

You're welcome!

Is this a skeleton?

You're looking at a work by Francis Guy called "Winter Scene in Brooklyn." Francis Guy was an English-born artist who worked in Baltimore and then Brooklyn. He specialized in topographical scenes, depicting towns and neighborhoods in a realistic and highly detailed manner.

Hm, that figure does look skeletal but I don't think he is in fact a skeleton. Where most of the figures and buildings in the painting are well identified this figure at the well is unknown.

Interesting, thanks!

The individuals in the picture were readily recognizable by Guy's contemporaries and neighbors in Brooklyn, and he completed this work while looking from his studio window. One participant recalled, "Guy, as he painted, would sometimes call out of the window, to his subjects, as he caught sight of them on their customary ground, to stand still while he put in the characteristic strokes."

Hello! That's a great question! This painting shows a scene in present-day downtown Brooklyn during the winter of 1819!

The artist, Francis Guy, created a scene based on what he could see from his window, so it's very close to the day-to-day life of Brooklyn about 100 years ago.

Back then, wood-burning fireplaces would have been the main way to keep warm, so people needed lots of wood!

Lucy says "Thanks."

Lucy is very welcome! We'd love more questions as you explore!

How many people lived in Brooklyn at this time?

That's a great question! I've had to look it up, but according to a 1820 census of 61 urban locations, there were about 7,000 people living in Brooklyn in 1820. At that time, Brooklyn was its own city, separate from Manhattan.

Can you tell me more about this?

"Winter Scene in Brooklyn" shows us how much was going on everyday in early 19th century Brooklyn. There is a diagram on the wall identifying all the people.

Painting scenes like this were what Francis Guy was known for. This is the view from the artist's second story studio window on Front Street in downtown Brooklyn.

Was this really Brooklyn?

This was DUMBO circa 1820! Francis Guy was capturing Brooklyn before there were high-rise buildings and skyscrapers. So much more of the sky is visible that we see now!

He actually captured this scene from his own window and the people and the activities they're engaging in is what he saw on a daily basis.

Could you tell me about this painting?

In this painting, the artist was capturing a scene of early Brooklyn. The view is from the artist's second story window in downtown Brooklyn. The buildings in this scene include a farm, stables, a blacksmith, a carpenter's shop, and so much more! There's actually a guy lying on his back who slipped on the ice/snow and fell. Do you see him?

Where is this painting set?

This is the view from the artist's second story studio window in downtown Brooklyn. The view is not entirely accurate, however. Guy accentuated the curve of Front Street to bring the houses along its outer edges into view. This would have been what modern-day DUMBO would have looked like in 1820.

Who is this man who fell? Is there a meaning associated with the fallen man?

The view is showing a typical winter's day in Brooklyn. As far as I know, the fallen man does not have any meaning.

Is there any significance to him being African American?

I asked myself the same question when I was first researching the painting. Although some figures are identified, the fallen man is not. However, we have no further explanation from the artist. I suppose that in itself has significance---we can only guess that whoever he was, he unfortunately wasn't considered significant enough for identification at the time.

Thanks!

Winter Scene in Brooklyn

Francis Guy

American Art

On View: American Art Galleries, 5th Floor, Imagining the New Nation’s Landscape, 1800–1880

By the time the Brooklyn Institute (the Museum’s forerunner) acquired this work in 1846, downtown Brooklyn was already much changed from the village depicted by Francis Guy. This picturesque cityscape appealed to those living in the rapidly developing East. Observers at the time noted that at the heart of the image was the “old-fashioned” Dutch-style barnyard of Abiel Titus. This feature greatly contrasted with the elegant houses originally included at left, before the painting was damaged by fire in 1881.

Painted from the vantage point of the artist’s second-story window facing Front Street, it included what were considered to be lifelike portraits of many of his neighbors. A printed “key” identifying them accompanied this work in its 1820 exhibition.

This work may be in the public domain in the United States. Works created by United States and non-United States nationals published prior to 1923 are in the public domain, subject to the terms of any applicable treaty or agreement.
You may download and use Brooklyn Museum images of this work. Please include caption information from this page and credit the Brooklyn Museum. If you need a high resolution file, please fill out our online application form (charges apply).
The Museum does not warrant that the use of this work will not infringe on the rights of third parties, such as artists or artists' heirs holding the rights to the work. It is your responsibility to determine and satisfy copyright or other use restrictions before copying, transmitting, or making other use of protected items beyond that allowed by "fair use," as such term is understood under the United States Copyright Act.
The Brooklyn Museum makes no representations or warranties with respect to the application or terms of any international agreement governing copyright protection in the United States for works created by foreign nationals.
For further information about copyright, we recommend resources at the United States Library of Congress, Cornell University, Copyright and Cultural Institutions: Guidelines for U.S. Libraries, Archives, and Museums, and Copyright Watch.
For more information about the Museum's rights project, including how rights types are assigned, please see our blog posts on copyright.
If you have any information regarding this work and rights to it, please contact copyright@brooklynmuseum.org.

"CUR" at the beginning of an image file name means that the image was created by a curatorial staff member. These study images may be digital point-and-shoot photographs, when we don\'t yet have high-quality studio photography, or they may be scans of older negatives, slides, or photographic prints, providing historical documentation of the object.

RECORD COMPLETENESS

Not every record you will find here is complete. More information is available for some works than for others, and some entries have been updated more recently. Records are frequently reviewed and revised, and we welcome any additional information you might have.

Download our app and ask your own questions during your visit. Here are some that others have asked.

So much sky here!

This scene is especially beautiful because the artist was capturing a scene of early Brooklyn and during that time there were no high-rise buildings or skyscrapers in Brooklyn or New York City, so much more sky is visible than now. Also, he was capturing a scene from his own window and remaining true to what he saw on a daily basis.

What streets are these?

Those are Old Fulton Street and Front Street
in what is today Downtown Brooklyn, right by the Brooklyn Bridge. Front Street was a fashionable street lined with upper-class residences. At this time, Front Street was at the Brooklyn waterfront. The view is not entirely accurate however: Guy greatly accentuated the curve of Front Street in order to bring the houses along its outer edges into view. He also altered the angle of James Street to accommodate a broad wedge of houses.

Are any of these buildings still standing?

I love this work by Francis Guy! Those are Old Fulton Streets and Front Streets in what is today Downtown Brooklyn, right by the Brooklyn Bridge. I don't think any of those building are still there.

At this time, Front Street was at the Brooklyn waterfront. The view is not entirely accurate however: Guy greatly accentuated the curve of Front Street in order to bring the houses along its outer edges into view. He also altered the angle of James Street to accommodate a broad wedge of houses. Many visitors ask about the lack of women in the painting, any theories?

1820, hmm, 'twas a different time.

Ye' be right!

Did women not venture outside or were they just not in the painting?

The picture features the prominent white men in the neighborhood that the artist knew, so he would not have depicted as many women or African American people as affluent, white men. It is an indication of both the artist's choices and the time (in another American Identities gallery, you can see many depictions of women, but in interior scenes). At the time women were obviously limited in what they could do and were mostly encouraged to stay home and tend to children and domestic things. Guy actually staged the models and painted them one at a time, so he deliberately chose not to include many women or African Americans at the time.

So, this is what the Dumbo area once looked like?

Yes, that is Old Fulton Street and Front Street in what is today Downtown Brooklyn, right by the Brooklyn Bridge. Front Street was a fashionable street lined with upper-class residences. At this time, Front Street was at the Brooklyn waterfront. The view is not entirely accurate however: Guy greatly accentuated the curve of Front Street in order to bring the houses along its outer edges into view. He also altered the angle of James Street to accommodate a broad wedge of houses.

Thanks!

You're welcome!

Is this a skeleton?

You're looking at a work by Francis Guy called "Winter Scene in Brooklyn." Francis Guy was an English-born artist who worked in Baltimore and then Brooklyn. He specialized in topographical scenes, depicting towns and neighborhoods in a realistic and highly detailed manner.

Hm, that figure does look skeletal but I don't think he is in fact a skeleton. Where most of the figures and buildings in the painting are well identified this figure at the well is unknown.

Interesting, thanks!

The individuals in the picture were readily recognizable by Guy's contemporaries and neighbors in Brooklyn, and he completed this work while looking from his studio window. One participant recalled, "Guy, as he painted, would sometimes call out of the window, to his subjects, as he caught sight of them on their customary ground, to stand still while he put in the characteristic strokes."

Hello! That's a great question! This painting shows a scene in present-day downtown Brooklyn during the winter of 1819!

The artist, Francis Guy, created a scene based on what he could see from his window, so it's very close to the day-to-day life of Brooklyn about 100 years ago.

Back then, wood-burning fireplaces would have been the main way to keep warm, so people needed lots of wood!

Lucy says "Thanks."

Lucy is very welcome! We'd love more questions as you explore!

How many people lived in Brooklyn at this time?

That's a great question! I've had to look it up, but according to a 1820 census of 61 urban locations, there were about 7,000 people living in Brooklyn in 1820. At that time, Brooklyn was its own city, separate from Manhattan.

Can you tell me more about this?

"Winter Scene in Brooklyn" shows us how much was going on everyday in early 19th century Brooklyn. There is a diagram on the wall identifying all the people.

Painting scenes like this were what Francis Guy was known for. This is the view from the artist's second story studio window on Front Street in downtown Brooklyn.

Was this really Brooklyn?

This was DUMBO circa 1820! Francis Guy was capturing Brooklyn before there were high-rise buildings and skyscrapers. So much more of the sky is visible that we see now!

He actually captured this scene from his own window and the people and the activities they're engaging in is what he saw on a daily basis.

Could you tell me about this painting?

In this painting, the artist was capturing a scene of early Brooklyn. The view is from the artist's second story window in downtown Brooklyn. The buildings in this scene include a farm, stables, a blacksmith, a carpenter's shop, and so much more! There's actually a guy lying on his back who slipped on the ice/snow and fell. Do you see him?

Where is this painting set?

This is the view from the artist's second story studio window in downtown Brooklyn. The view is not entirely accurate, however. Guy accentuated the curve of Front Street to bring the houses along its outer edges into view. This would have been what modern-day DUMBO would have looked like in 1820.

Who is this man who fell? Is there a meaning associated with the fallen man?

The view is showing a typical winter's day in Brooklyn. As far as I know, the fallen man does not have any meaning.

Is there any significance to him being African American?

I asked myself the same question when I was first researching the painting. Although some figures are identified, the fallen man is not. However, we have no further explanation from the artist. I suppose that in itself has significance---we can only guess that whoever he was, he unfortunately wasn't considered significant enough for identification at the time.